The Brooklyn Paper: SNA Newspaper of the Year, 2007

The current issue
Neighborhood Map
Bay Ridge
  • Bensonhurst, Dyker Heights
Brooklyn Heights
  • Downtown, DUMBO
Carroll Gardens
  • Cobble Hill, Red Hook, Boerum Hill
Fort Greene
  • Clinton Hill, Crown Heights
North Brooklyn
  • Williamsburg, Greenpoint, Bushwick
Park Slope
  • Prospect Heights, Windsor Terrace, Greenwood Heights
GO Brooklyn
Brooklyn Cyclones
Not Just Nets
Police Blotter
Perspective
Parenting
Politics
Transit
Media archive
The Brooklyn Bride
Brooklyn Boom
Classifieds
Merchant news
About The Paper
RSS Feeds
Esquire Bank

Letters

Saturday, Nov. 24, 2007

Readers all over Brooklyn are doin’ the pigeon

Letters: Our mailbag is filled with missives about Barclays, pigeons, two old sisters and restaurateur Nick Monte. Comment.

Saturday, Aug. 4, 2007

We’re in a heap of trouble if Barron’s the Beep

Letters: Once again, The Paper has been inundated with correspondence from readers like you. Comment.

Saturday, April 21, 2007

Foes of supportive housing in Slope fight back

Letters: Lots of anger over our coverage of a supportive housing facility in Park Slope, plus all our other letters. Comment.

Saturday, April 14, 2007

A bus driver enjoys his holiday in Fort Greene

Letters: A full mailbag of letters this week. Comment.

Saturday, Dec. 1, 2007

Readers speak in favor of tearing down Admirals Row

Letters: The mailbag is full with letters about the Brooklyn Navy Yard, Mayor Bloomberg’s Coney Island plan, the death of bicycle rider Sam Hindy, and Brooklyn Heights’ favorite son, Norman Mailer. Comment.

Saturday, May 5, 2007

Wanted: bike lane

Letters: We received a remarkably high volume of mail regarding the controversy of a city plan to eliminate one lane of traffic in each direction on Ninth Street and replace them with left-turn bays and install bike lanes on each side of the street. Virtually every letter was in favor of the city plan. Comment.

Supportive housing supporter has say

Letters: Another voice in favor of a Fifth Avenue Committee project — plus all your letters. Comment.

Saturday, June 16, 2007

Beaten by girls then offended by Paper

Letters: Lots of mail about our coverage of Prospect Heights’ “tween bandits,” ugly buildings on Fourth Avenue, the resignation of a Community Board 6 member, Rudy Giuliani and, of course, the Nathan’s hot dog-eating contest. Comments (1).

Saturday, Sep. 22, 2007

Trolley operators fire back at our cover story

Letters: Letters: This week’s mailbag features two letters attacking our recent criticism of the Heart of Brooklyn “trolley,” plus letters on our F-train coverage and the Khalil Gibran International Academy (what else is new?). Comment.

Saturday, Oct. 20, 2007

America speaks: Graffiti Girl proves NY stinks

Letters: The Brooklyn Paper received more e-mails and comments regarding its front page story on 6-year-old “graffiti” vandal Natalie Shea than on any story in its 30-year history (“New face of vandalism,” Oct. 13). True, the ease of Internet communication and the nature of modern blogging played a role, but there’s no question that Shea’s story touched people in ways in which they are not usually touched. Here’s a sampling from our mailbag. Comments (5).

GAPco leader demands: Take me to your editor!

Letters: Our mailbag groans under the weight of letters about Grand Army Plaza, pay-to-play politics in the City Council, The Paper’s Atlantic Yards editorial and New York University’s proposed merger with Polytechnic University. Comment.

Saturday, June 9, 2007

Sen. Golden not pleased with Alpine coverage

Letters: A Bay Ridge lawmaker takes exception to a recent story — plus letters on Marty Markowitz, Memorial Day, Bruce Ratner and one man’s astounding nipple hair! Comment.

Saturday, June 2, 2007

Hey, Marty Markowitz! Our readers say ‘Yer out!’

Letters: Readers respond negatively to Borough President Markowitz’s purge of anti–Atlantic Yards community board members — plus lots of other letters. Comment.

Saturday, Sep. 1, 2007

She disliked our coverage — but loved the photo of her children!

Letters: Our mailbag is filled with letters about the changes on Columbia Street, a former brothel on Lincoln Place, a Downtown development project, Paul LoDuca’s rehab starts with the Cyclones, our troops in Iraq, and what a great job reporter Matthew Lysiak is doing Comment.

Saturday, July 21, 2007

This regular ‘Joe’ wants a Wal-Mart in Brooklyn

Letters: Our mailbag runneth over with missives about the new Trader Joe’s, traffic, our Cyclones coverage, a stolen tricycle, a cellphone tower on 81st Street, and, of course, Atlantic Yards. Comment.

Saturday, Sep. 8, 2007

Gersh’s push for green angers some Slopers

Letters: Somehow, our columnist’s anti-litter call angered some former Park Slopers — plus letters on Brooklyn hospitality, the late John Gallahue, plans for a rodeo in Prospect Park, President Bush’s slow response to the Bay Ridge tornado, a former brothel in Park Slope, and the fine work being done by our Bay Ridge reporter, Matthew Lysiak. Comment.

Saturday, Sep. 29, 2007

Reader’s rip The Paper’s F express editorial, calling fix cheap & easy

Letters: Our mailbag is full with responses to our F-train express editorial, plus notes about Coney Island, Duffield Street, the express bus from Bay Ridge, the fake trolley in Prospect Park, the ongoing raccoon invasion, and our recent awards from the Independent Free Papers of America. Comment.

Saturday, Oct. 13, 2007

Fulton Mall unclassy? A reader begs to differ

Letters: The mailbag is full with comments about our recent coverage of Fulton Mall, an alleged “cat-napping” case, the possible sale of the Slave Theater, the Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy, and a plan for a seven-story apartment building in Carroll Gardens. Comment.

Saturday, Dec. 15, 2007

Hey, Brooklyn Paper: Stop picking on the Italians

Letters: Letters pour in regarding a Hanukkah snub; the loss of the Brooklyn Dodgers; an allegation of an anti-Italian bias in The Brooklyn Paper; how to keep our streets safe; Bruce Ratner’s new tower at City Tech; security at Atlantic Yards; poor bus service in Brooklyn; Smartmom’s column; and the limits of Paper Editor Gersh Kuntzman’s intelligence. Comment.

Saturday, Nov. 3, 2007

Big deal. Astroland has been saved. Now what?

Letters: Our mailbag is full as usual! Comment.

Saturday, Jan. 20, 2007

Letters: Marty was right: The Paper is biased!

Letters: A writer concurs with Borough President Markowitz in slamming The Paper’s Atlantic Yards coverage. Comment.

Saturday, March 17, 2007

Do you want lies with that? Whole Food’s answers ain’t kosher

Letters: The latest sampling of our mailbag, including a movie recommendation from our councilman and a letter from a former Paper reporter! Comment.

Saturday, May 26, 2007

Respect your neighbors

Letters: Letters from our Stoop readers. Comment.

Without Arab contributions, we’d be in Dark Ages

Letters: Lots of letters about our Arabic language and culture school coverage — plus more mail on Atlantic Yards and litter. Comment.

Saturday, Aug. 25, 2007

Readers respond to The Paper’s Arabic school coverage, editorial

Letters: Our Inbox was stuffed with letters about our coverage of the Khalil Gibran International Academy, our coverage of Councilman Simcha Felder (in a note from the Councilman himself!), the development of Coney Island, parrots in Park Slope, a neighborhood brothel, luxury development Downtown, and a strange omission on Borough President Markowitz’s Web site. Comment.

Saturday, Sep. 15, 2007

Clone star’s mom loves Paper’s Triple-Threat

Letters: Letters about Ed Shakespeare’s coverage of the Cyclones; the Arabic language and culture school, Khalil Gibran International Academy; racism at the McCarren Park pool; the redevelopment of Duffield Street; the state of repair — or disrepair — of the Coney Island Boardwalk; a plea to retain an artist’s Borough Hall project; redevelopment of Coney Island; and one woman’s particular love for “Alex.” Comment.

Saturday, Dec. 8, 2007

What’s with The Paper’s pro-Thor Coney coverage?

Letters: Letters on Coney Island, the Navy Yard’s Admirals Row, security at Atlantic Yards and a report from one of our “Big Turkey” contest winners! Comment.

Saturday, Oct. 6, 2007

Tish: Duffield St co-name could save historic homes

Letters: Our mailbag is filled with complaints from a City Councilwoman, a Polytechnic University alum, a member of the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership, the head of the Chamber of Commerce and others. Comment.

Saturday, Nov. 17, 2007

Coney Island’s future is in good hands: Bloomy’s

Letters: Our mailbag is bursting with letters about Coney Island, the invasion of the nuthatches, Sen. Charles Schumer’s “painful’ support for new Attorney General Michael Mukasey, a gay and lesbian political group’s rejection of Atlantic Yards, and a new rivalry on the muddy Gowanus Canal. Comment.

Saturday, April 7, 2007

One-way debate continues

Letters: Our readers sound off some more on the plan to install one-way avenues in Park Slope. Comment.

Saturday, Oct. 27, 2007

Once again, the world reacts to ‘Graffiti Girl’

Letters: Our letters column has lots of interesting missives about the 6-year-old graffiti girl, the greatness of Park Slope, the new “green” Galapagos art center, two new old-style clocks on Flatbush Avenue, our Big Turkey Thanksgiving Dinner contest, the Khalil Gibran International Academy, an adult toy shop on Fifth Avenue and our Bay Ridge columnist Matthew Lysiak. Comment.

Saturday, Dec. 22, 2007

Expert: There is a way to fix Atlantic Yards traffic

Letters: The mailbag is filled with letters about Atlantic Yards, Walter O’Malley’s induction into the Hall of Fame, biking safely and bus service in Brooklyn. Comments (3).

Saturday, June 30, 2007

Reader credits government for Internet success

Letters: This week’s mailbag includes reaction to our interview with conservative columnist Amity Shlaes — plus letters on Marty Markowitz’s run for mayor, getting high, development Downtown, public and private schools and Coney Island Comment.

Saturday, May 12, 2007

Arrested pol Karim Camara finally speaks out

Letters: A letter from Assemblyman Karim Camara — and other hot missives! Comment.

Saturday, May 19, 2007

Tolls on bridges do job of ‘congestion pricing’

Letters: A letter about the mayor’s congestion pricing plan, plus missives about litter, Councilman Simcha Felder, IKEA’s plans for Red Hook, and step-moms. Comment.

Saturday, Nov. 10, 2007

Editor’s mom wants her beloved son to ride safe

Letters: Our mailbag is filled with missives about our bike-riding editor (from his mom!), plans for the Gowanus Canal, our outrageous headlines, the Monitor Museum in Williamsburg, a Park Slope day-care center in a Kafka-esque nightmare, Smartmom’s new biggest fan (he’s a shrink, what a surprise!), and the need for more trains in Downtown Brooklyn. Comment.

Saturday, June 23, 2007

Marty would be great as a Bush appointee

Letters: Our full mailbag includes letters about Borough President Markowitz’s purge of Community Board 6 members, the annual hot dog-eating contest in Coney Island, Bay Ridge’s historic Green Church, a claim that The Brooklyn Paper is sexist (what else is new?!), and concern about God. Comment.

Saturday, Jan. 13, 2007

Yea and nay for Marty, Atlantic Yards reports

Letters: Readers react to our interview with Marty Markowitz. Comment.

Saturday, Feb. 10, 2007

Slavery? Apartheid? Barclays deal is wrong for other reasons

Letters: Our mailbag is again filled with more missives about our “Blood Money” front page. Comment.

Saturday, Aug. 11, 2007

Fixing rubber band problem a stretch

Letters: Once again, we’ve received a number of interesting letters from readers like you! Comment.

Bearing witness to the Witnesses

Letters: In a letter to The Paper, a former Jehovah’s Witness issues a warning. Comments (1).

Saturday, Feb. 17, 2007

Linking Ratnerville and Miss Oklahoma win

Letters: The mailbag is again filled with letters about Miss America and Bruce Ratner’s Barclays deal. Comment.

Saturday, April 28, 2007

Cash and carry: Reader warns of deep pockets

Letters: One reader blames the victim for her mugging, while another longs for one last photo of Herbie the Hereford - plus the rest of our weekly mailbag. Comment.

Saturday, Aug. 18, 2007

Nathan’s grandson chides Paper for pro-Thor editorial

Letters: This week’s mailbag is full of letters about our coverage of Thor Equities’ Coney Island plan, Borough President Markowitz’s dream of a Brooklyn Nordstrom, the Jehovah’s Witnesses, a bike lane on Ninth Street, an unstable stable near a construction site in Kensington, and, of course, our recent award as “Newspaper of the Year.” Comment.

Saturday, Feb. 24, 2007

Library responds to ‘censorship’ charge

Letters: The Brooklyn Public Library fires back at charges that it censored an Atlantic Yards art show. Comment.

Saturday, March 3, 2007

Two John Jay HS principals fire back at The Paper

Letters: Our weekly letters column gets hotter than ever, with attacks from two John Jay HS principals, an Atlantic Yards supporter and a fan of the Brooklyn Public Library’s supposed “censorship” of an anti–Atlantic Yards exhibition. Comment.

Saturday, July 28, 2007

Markowitz for mayor? Our readers respond

Letters: Our mailbag is full with letters about Borough President Markowitz’s run for mayor, Barack Obama’s run for president, a state bill to ban the distribution of some flyers and the conclusion of the Arena Bagels saga. Comment.

Saturday, Feb. 3, 2007

Is the tide turning on Paper’s ‘Blood Money’ page one?

Letters: The Paper’s mailbag is once again filled with anger from Atlantic Yards supporters — plus some support. Comment.

Saturday, March 24, 2007

Saturday, May 19, 2007

Now Boerum Hill parents angered by Arabic school

Letters: Parents react with anger at — and support for — a proposed Arabic language and culture school, now slated to be located in Boerum Hill. Comment.

Saturday, July 14, 2007

Longfellow deserves serenade, not dishonor

Letters: This week’s mailbag is full of letters commenting on other letter writers’ letters — plus missives about Grand Army Plaza, a school that wants to strip the Longfellow name off the front, the Khalil Gibran International Academy, the new floating pool, a group of wacky artists on Eldert Street, the hope for an F express train and, of course, Atlantic Yards. Comment.

Saturday, March 10, 2007

Slope going nuts over ‘insane’ one-way plan

Letters: The plan to make Seventh and Sixth avenues into one-way thoroughfares filled the mailbag; also, letters about the F train, postal service, Whole Foods and censorship. Comment.

Saturday, Jan. 6, 2007

Councilman: Indeed, I do have a great bladder

Letters: I write to thank you for awarding me “Bladder of the Year” (“Here’s to the winners,” Year in review, Dec. 30). Indeed, my bladder deserves this award, as it boldly withstands a daily barrage of coffee that would destroy most other bladders. But even the boldest warriors must find relief at times, and my bladder does quite often, as it must in order to survive the hell that I put it through. Comment.

Saturday, Jan. 27, 2007

Ratner’s ‘Blood Money’ fills the mailbag

Letters: Readers respond to last week’s story about Bruce Ratner’s deal with Barclays Bank, an institution with links to slavery, the Holocaust and apartheid. Comment.

Saturday, Feb. 10, 2007

Miss America: A nation speaks

Letters: Gersh Kuntzman’s recent Brooklyn Angle column about the Miss America pageant (“Snubbed! Miss New york loses big crown again”, Feb. 3) prompted an avalanche of letters condemning Kuntzman for his misplaced Brooklyn pride. Since Kuntzman has had his say, we felt obligated to allow our readers to have their say about whether Miss New York or Miss Oklahoma deserved the top tiara. Comment.

Full Barclays letter to The Paper

Letters: Barclays has requested a retraction from this newspaper (and others) for stories about the bank’s link to slavery and other dark moments in human history. We stand our ground. Comment.
Rico
Frame It in Brooklyn
Corcoran
La Bagel Delight